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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. J.BERRY., NEEDLE GROOVING MACHINE.

Patented May 28, 1889.

QWi/Lmemy N. PETERS. Phnm-Limo n her. Woxhmglon. D. C.

No Model.) J BERRY 2 Sheets-Sheet.2. NEEDLE GROOVING MACHINE.

Patented May 28, 1889.

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qmitmweo Nr'rE STATES ATENT OFFICE.

JOHN BERRY, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONALNEEDLE COMPANY, on SAME PLACE.

NEEDLE-GROOVING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 404,336, dated May 28,1889.

I Application filed October 29, 1888- Serial No. 289,430. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN BERRY, a citizen of the United States, residingat Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts,have invented new and useful Improvem ents in N eedle-Grooving Machines,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements on needle-grooving machines suchas shown in the Letters Patent of the United States granted to me May 1,1888, No. 382,250, and particularly relates, first, to means for sochanging the speed of the carrier for the needle-clamping fingers thatwhen such fingers are to present the needle clamped thereby to therotary grooving-cutters the carrier therefor will move at a very slowrate of speed,

- while at the time the carrier is moved to retire the needle from thecutters after same have performed their grooving operation thereon, andto receive and represent another needle to be grooved, its speed isconsiderably accelerated, whereby the machine will be capable ofgrooving an increased number of needles in a given time; and theinvention particularly relates, secondly, to devices operatinginconjunction with the needle-carrying fingers and the needle receiver andfeedway, whereby the frictional contact of the needle next behind theone clamped by the fingers upon the sides of said fingers at the time ofthe movement thereof, either to present or retire a needle, is avoided;and to these ends the invention consists in the construction andcombination of the various parts, all substantially aswill hereinaftermore fully appear, and be set forth in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the same kind of needle-grooving machineas that described in the aforesaid Letters Patent, with the improvementsof the present invention applied thereon. Fig. 2 is a plan andhorizontal sectional view of parts shown in Fig. 1, as will hereinafterappear. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the needle-carrying clamp-fingerswith features of improvement in accordance with the second part of thisinvention applied thereon, Fig. 4 illustrating in plan and partialhorizontal section the same and a portion of the feedway for theneedle-supply, and Fig. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of saidparts on the line a: 00, Figs. 3 and 4.

The main shaft 3 of the machine has on its outer end the worm-wheel 4,which is engaged bya worm-screw, 7, carried on a vertical shaft, 5,which has at its upper end a grooved driving-pulley, 6. Theneedle-fingers 64 and 65, to receive and clamp the needle and todischarge same, are given a reciprocating motion to the cutters and awaytherefrom, under the action of the cam 77 on the main shaft, against theend of a sliding bar, 76, under the bed of the machine, which has aconnection by a link, 78, with a vibratory lever, 7 5, pivoted by itslower end to a fixed arm, 7 4:, under the machine, the upper end of thesaid lever 75 being connected to the needle-finger clasps, a weight, H,being applied to constantly hold the end of the bar in contact with thecam 77, all as has heretofore been made manifest by and in my saidLetters Patent, and only being now shown that the co-operative relationsand action by the devices hereinafter described with and on saidbriefly-mentioned mechanism may be fully understood.

Motion is imparted to the worm-shaft 5 and driving-shaft 3 at twospeeds, according as the belt a from the pulley 6 is around the pulley bor the pulley d. The former, b, is fixed upon the counter-shaft f, whichis driven at a comparatively slow speed, while the pulley d is of sleeveform and rotates in the same direction freely on and independent of saidcounter-shaft fat a much greater rate of speed than said pulley 6,receiving such rotation by the engagement with the pulley g, rigidlyfixed on its hub-extension, of abelt, h, which also passes around apulley, j, on a countershaft, is, which in any suitable manner is morerapidly rotated than the counter-shaftf.

The shifting of the belt a from slow pulley b to fast pulley d, or viceversa, is automatically accomplished by the movement of theintermediately-pivoted swinging shifter-lever G, having thebelt-engaging hooks Z at its outer end, and its inner end beyond itspivotal point i being located for a contact or engagement with a cam, M,on the face of the worm-wheel. The said cam may be a facecam, as shown,to positively move the adj acent endof the shifter-lever in onedirection, a retract-1n g-spring cffectin g its reverse swing when saidcam has passed out of contact; or said cam may be a grooved one, securedin the inner periphery of the worm-wheel rim, withln which an angularprojection formed on the end of the shifter-lever might enter, in whichlatter instance both movements of the shifter would be positive. Saidcams are to be ad ustable or interchangeable, whereby the relativeperiods of driving from said pulleys b (Z may be varied, for in forminglong grooves in needles the fingers should be given the slow travel fora longer time than when short grooves were being made, and the needlesrequire to be held to the action of the cutters for a less time.

Instead of having the inner side of the lower needle clamp-finger, 6i,lie opposite to and cover for the greater portion of the time thedischarging end of the needle-receiver slot, as heretofore practiced, ablock, P, is set in a horizontal dovetailed way, 17, of the said fingerG4, and normally to be held over the d1scharging end of said slot,whereby the sald fingcr 6% may slide over the said block, leaving thelatter to receive the impact and pressure against its side of the thenforemost needle in the slot, and just before the fingers have beenbacked out sufficiently to bring their clamping portions opposite theneedlereceiver slot said obstructionblock P will be moved out of itsposition of covering for the slot, end to be returned thereto, however,after the needle-fingers have taken another needle and moved inwardlytherewith.

As particularly seen in Fig. Al, the block has a shoulder, m, at itsforward end in the hue of travel of and for an. engagement by theshoulder a on the forward end portion of the finger 64, but just at therear of the clampingaws. To the rear end of the said obstruction-blockis pivoted a link, 7, which at its rear end is pivotally connected tothe forward end of another link, i, which by its other end is pivoted toa stationary lug of the machineframe.

Q represents an adjustable bar having an abutment-shoulder, f, towardits forward end, said bar being rigidly supported when adjusted on thefinger-guiding posts (56 67,which are movable endwise in unison withsaid fingers.

\Vith the needle-lingers carried to their forward positions, as shown inFigs. 3 and 4 and the said block P covering the end of a slot, then asthe fingers are retired the one, L, slides by its way 1) over the saidblock P until the clamp-jaws come nearly to and opposite the end of theslot, when the block is forced backward and the two connected lmks q rare forced to occupy positions about at right angles to each other, theshoulder t of the bar Q having been passed to occupy a position at therear of the then angularlydisposed links, so that on the next forwardmovement of the fingers and said bar the shoulder thereof will strikeand move the links forward until the said links are made to occupyangles more obtuse to each other and the apex thereof is in a lowerplane than the said shoulder, which passes out of contact with thelinks, and the movement of the block ceases, at which time it is againopposite the slot to cover same and receive the impact of the needles,the bearing-pressure thereon being considerable, and which,

if coming directly on the side of the moving needle-finger, would wear agroove therein and otherwise result in unsatisfactory eil'ects in thepractical and continued operation of the machine. i

It will of course be apparent that instead of the return of theobstruction-block P to its normal position by the engagement therewithof the toggle-formed links a simple retractin gspring may be employed.

\Vhat I claim as my invention is- 1.. In a needle-grooving machine, themainshaft worm-wheel having the cam, and the worm-screw shaft having apulley, the fast and slow pulleys (l b, and the belt a, combined withthe pivoted belt-shifter by one end in engagement with said cam and byits other with said belt, whereby on the swing of the shifter by the camthe belt will be moved from one of said pulleys to the other,substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In a needle-grooving machine, the mainshaft worm-wheel having the camM, and the worm-screw shaft having a pulley, the fast and. slow rotatingcounter-shafts k the pulley l), fixed on the latter, and the pulley (I,loosely rotatable thereon and receiving its rotary motion from saidshaft 7r, substantially as described, and the belt a, combined with thepivoted belt-shifter by one end in engagement with said cam and by itsother with said belt, all substantially as and for the purposedescribed.

The combination, with the slotted needle receiver and guide and thercciprocatory sliding clamp-finger 64, having the way 1) and a shoulder,a, substantially as described, of an obstruction-block normally coveringthe end of the needle-receiver slot, movable in said finger-way andlocated in the line of travel of said finger-shoulder, whereby at aperiod of the backward movement of said needle-finger said block will berearwardly moved thereon, and means, substantially as described, forautomatically returning said block on the forward movement of saidfinger, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the slotted needle receiver and guide and thercciprocatory sliding clamp-finger 6i, having the longitudinal way 17therein and the shoulder n,

machine, all arranged for operation substantially as and for the purposedescribed.

JOHN BERRY.

Witnesses:

WM. L. BELLOWS, H. A. CHAPIN,

